Gold is going nuts

Gold is popping off. As of 2:55 p.m. GMT (9:55 a.m. ET) it's
hovering just above $1,090 (£745) per ounce, and is up by nearly
1.2%, leading the pack when it comes to widely traded
commodities.

There's one simple reason for this: the
volatility of the markets right now.

Since trading began for the year on Monday, global markets have
been all over the place, but there's been a broad trend
of markets crashing into the red — stocks in Europe and the
USA are down today, and oil is at its lowest level in more than a
decade.

Gold, traditionally a safe haven for investors, has bucked that
trend and started the year with three days of gains. So far in
2016 the world's most loved precious metal is up more than 2.6%.

Traditionally investors flock to buy gold when markets are
wracked by uncertainty. That's because owning a physical piece of
gold is generally seen as reassuring, compared to other assets
like stocks and futures.